B2B Inbound Marketing: What You Need to Know in 2023 and Beyond

What Is B2B Inbound Marketing?

Inbound marketing is also known as "pull" marketing. That's because you're attracting customers to your business instead of pushing them.

And you're doing that throughout all the sales funnel stages.

For B2B inbound marketing, you must align your marketing efforts to the B2B sales funnel, which is different than B2C:

• Your target audience comprises key decision-makers in companies.
  
• Your sales funnel is longer because these people do more in-depth research, and you're selling more expensive solutions.
  
• The loyalty stage is not the final step because your B2B buyers are constantly looking for better products and are loyal to their company first.
  

This deformed sales funnel looks like this:

What does that mean for your company?

• In the short term (per campaign basis): You must pull your B2B buyers with relevant information, using their needs throughout the sales funnel as a compass.
  
• In the long run: You must build up your expertise and gain people's trust.
  

Inbound vs. Outbound Marketing

B2B marketing channels fall into two categories: inbound and outbound.
To compare, let's start with a tl;dr followed by an (unexpected) analogy:

Now back to our topic.
A B2B outbound marketing strategy pushes specific marketing-related products to potential customers, such as:


• Ads;
  
• Discounts;
  
• Cold calls;
  
• And more.
  

These intrusive, short-term marketing tools can generate massive sales during a well-defined period.

Side note: Outbound marketing also relies less on audience segmentation than inbound marketing, which values a granular understanding of the target audience.

This ad for Cisco is a good example of an outbound tactic:

By contrast, inbound marketing relies on offering resources that support your B2B buyers along the sales funnel with personalized information.

Here are the main points to consider:


• Mindset: With inbound marketing, you believe you should give more to gain more. In this case, you offer more valuable resources that earn your B2B shoppers' trust, word-of-mouth recommendations, and loyal customers.
  
• Goals: You aim to educate and help your prospects so that you will get more loyal customers that stick with you in the long run.
  
• Message: You will adapt your messaging according to the platform and audience. Your messages don't interrupt your prospects but rather complete and improve their online experience.
  
• Dissemination method: Inbound messages blend with the platform they're displayed on. You aim to raise people's curiosity and offer helpful solutions without pushing your products.
  
• Revenue: Inbound marketing aims to increase your return on investment constantly and in the long run without focusing on short-term gains.
  

Cisco uses some inbound strategies on its social media profiles and websites.

For example, this post educates prospects on the dangers of supply chain attacks, leading them to a free podcast to get more info:

Source

Besides, Cisco's website is a treasure trove of helpful resources, from articles to webinars and guided online courses (with certifications):

Source

What Are the Benefits of Inbound Marketing?

We already touched on some benefits of inbound marketing. Let's summarize all the advantages you can reap:

Better Search Engine Ranking

Inbound marketing relies on answering people's needs proactively with multiple resources.

That means you'll write in-depth pieces using many target keywords with high search intent. Consequently, you'll rank higher in search engines and be more visible.

Better Reputation

Offering all these resources establishes you as an authority or thought leader in your niche.

More businesses will trust your expertise, signing up for your newsletters and reading your website as a matter of course.

And businesses aren't the only ones that will consume and share your content. High-quality resources are an excellent inbound B2B link-building strategy, gaining more links from authoritative websites in your niche.

All this helps create qualified leads that put your brand top of their mind.

Higher Conversion Rates

Inbound marketing has higher conversion rates because:


• You're generating qualified leads.
  
• You're nurturing your prospects, guiding them effectively through the sales funnel.
  
• You benefit from direct recommendations via word-of-mouth or link-building.
  

More ROI

Studies show that inbound marketing has three times the ROI of outbound marketing.

That's because:


• Your conversion rates increase, as we demonstrated in the section above.
  
• You're saving resources by investing in precise targeting. This allows you to be more persuasive and automate posts on different social media platforms, thus cutting back work hours.
  
• Your quality content gets you more loyal customers in the long term because you've become an authority figure in your niche.
  

Inbound Marketing: Tactics that Move the Needle

If these advantages convinced you that it’s time to hop on the inbound marketing train, let’s see what tactics you can use:

Content Marketing

Content marketing is a must for any inbound strategy, especially in the B2B industry. Because you're addressing highly qualified decision-makers, who don't typically make impulsive purchases.

Besides, your content must be carefully aligned to your B2B prospect's buyer's journey across the sales funnel.

You must answer their needs with targeted, helpful solutions, nurturing them throughout the buying process.

Source

Consider these B2B content marketing strategies:


• Webinars
• Blog posts
  
• Podcasts
• Video content
  
• White papers
  
• Ebooks
  
• Industry case studies
  
• Original research
  

And they all have one thing in common: Focus on answering your customers’ pain points completely and comprehensively.

• Avoid fluff.
  
• Structure your content well.
  
• Respond to people’s search intents.
  

Thorough guides and step-by-step how-to materials should be part of your routine.

Pro tip: Use a keyword research tool to ensure you generate content that responds to your buyers’ search intent.

Introduce your seed keyword in the platform and then analyze factors like:


• How often do your prospects search for that term (search volume);
  
• How much competition do you have;
  
• Other potential organic keywords with high search volume;
  
• Keywords your competitors are using in their organic and paid strategies.
  

Use these insights to organize topic clusters and produce relevant content for your target audience.

For example, Adobe published this questionnaire on their blog using the "data management" seed keyword.

Source

Although it's not technically a blog post, it does appear on their resource center. And it helps companies assess their data management system better than an article outlining the variables to consider.

Besides, this type of article allows Adobe to rank for multiple other long-tail keywords in the same topic cluster, such as:

• Customer data management tools
  
• Business intelligence software
• Customer targeting
  

Basically, each of their questions includes such a keyword.

Video content is gaining traction too.

In the context of B2B, video allows you to explain how your products work in more depth. That way, you:

• Create more desire for your products;
  
• Flatten the learning curve significantly by thoroughly educating your audience;
  
• Alleviate pre-purchase fears.
  

Sure, these materials educate your audience. They help your B2B buyers compare faster between different solutions and decide easier in your favor because you're highlighting your expertise.

But these tools are also link-baits for authoritative websites in your niche, enhancing your link profile.

For example, EcoEnclose published an in-depth study about paper vs. plastic on their website.

This study showcases precise and unique results to this dilemma, which is why it has 36 backlinks from 34 domains at the time of this writing.

Social Media Marketing

Social media allows you to attract and entertain your audience when they're not acting in their professional capacities.

That means you can connect with them more profoundly, which is important because people buy from people. This connection is made primarily through:

• Content that resonates: Show your audience that you share the same values, mindset, and sense of humor.
  
• Two-way communication: Use the comments to interact with your audience, responding to their queries and learning more about their needs.
  

Besides, using social media effectively increases word-of-mouth considerably, especially if you encourage user-generated content.

EcoEnclose, a shipping solutions company, uses TikTok to connect with its audience, showcasing its products, values, and work culture.

Source

Testimonials

Testimonials prove your expertise. They answer pre-purchase questions and show your prospects real-life uses of your brand.

This valuable feedback can increase conversions significantly, especially if you show real results.

Royal Brinkman has a unique approach to testimonials:

Source

Instead of focusing on its brand, it puts its customers in the limelight. The company's products are secondary characters that support the clients' main stories.

The tactic of using text and video testimonials for marketing feels less salesy and allows new prospects to connect with the brand more authentically.

Email Marketing

Email marketing can be both an inbound and outbound marketing strategy. In the case of outbound, you'll mostly rely on cold emails with highly promotional content.

B2B inbound email marketing depends on offering those valuable resources your potential and existing customers need. As a result, you will send highly personalized emails that support each stage in the marketing funnel.

This email from Hunter.io was sent to a person who just subscribed to their platform to use their free version:

Notice there's nothing salesy in this email. Readers simply learn how to use the tool to verify their emails with Hunter.

Search Engine Optimization

We saved the best for last, although we discussed some SEO elements, particularly B2B keyword research and link-building.

But you must hone your entire SEO strategy:


• Consider the types of visitors you have: Informational visitors search for research-related key terms, while transactional website visitors look for purchase-related terms.
  
• Optimize your pages depending on the type of conversions: Sales pages are action-type conversions, producing lead generations. Blog pages create awareness, so your conversions include more subscribers, followers, or people who click on particular links.
  
• Optimize your user experience: Use design principles to optimize how your website looks. Use large text, strong contrast, unique colors, images, and white space to frame your content.
  

Search engine optimization is vital for B2B marketing because it:


• Helps you rank for competitive keywords according to your audience's search intent: That means you're more visible to future potential customers.
  
• Improves your visitors' overall user experience, keeping people on your page longer: This, along with gaining backlinks from reputable sources, increases your domain authority.
  

That brings us to the next point.

Inbound Marketing Strategy Step by Step

Now you know what inbound marketing entails and the best tactics to adopt. Let's organize all that information in a step-by-step plan you can implement today.

Set Your Goals

Your B2B inbound marketing campaign relies on clear goals with specific timelines, such as:


• Increase the number of marketing-qualified leads by 20% during the first trimester of [year].
  
• Drive 10% sales-qualified leads by [date].
  
• Increase organic traffic by 50% within X months.
  

These specific goals will help you:


• Set precise key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure them.
  
• Pick the right strategies, messages, and channels.
  

Build a Customer Value Proposition

The B2B audience has:


• More diverse demographics, interests, and backgrounds compared to regular B2C customers;
  
• Similar positions and needs;
  
• Humanizing your B2B customers with a name, age, dreams, and hobbies is futile because of their differences.
  

That's why building a customer value proposition is easier than a B2B buyer persona.

So:


• Focus on shared pain points.
  
• Showcase how your products/ software solutions can solve those common problems.
  

Berlin Packaging offers a straightforward example on its front page, explaining they provide different packaging solutions for all customers.

Source

Research Your Competition

Thorough competitor analysis reveals what works and what doesn't for your rivals. Adapt their experiences to your strategy.

Thorough competitor analysis reveals what works and what doesn't for your rivals. Adapt their experiences to your strategy.

Here are some valuable insights you can leverage:


• Their keyword strategy: This shows which keywords bring them the most organic traffic. That means the same search terms can get more B2B prospects to your website.
  
• Their backlink strategy: You can find websites that quote your rivals' resources; the same websites will likely link back to your content. You will also determine which keywords/pages your competitors build links to, which means these keywords generate a lot of organic traffic.
  
• Their resource strategy: Notice the free tools and resources your competitors offer. Jot down any calculators, courses, or quizzes you can add to your arsenal.
  
• Their paid media strategy: Check where they're splashing their ads, the type of advertisements they use, and who they're targeting. You can better sculpt your advertising strategies by getting the lowdown on their tactics. Additionally, consider working with paid media agencies, as they can provide expertise in managing and optimizing paid campaigns.
  

Of course, you should also look at your competitors:


• Marketing emails
  
• Social media accounts
  
• Overall website architecture and design
  
• Pricing
  
• Branding
  
• User reviews and feedback
  

Here's how to conduct a competitive analysis in a nutshell:


1.Shortlist your direct competitors.


2.Use SEO tools to gather all the information you need on their campaigns.


3.Determine common successful and unsuccessful points.


4.Outline your opportunities.

Build Your Strategy

Create Engaging Content

Remember to focus on the stages of the sales funnel:


• Awareness: Blog posts, videos, reports, social media posts, and industry studies
  
• Evaluation/consideration: Whitepapers, case studies, and webinars
  
• Purchase: Customized marketing emails, testimonials
  

Promote Your Content

Promoting your content leads to increased visibility and better search engine rankings. You can use:


• Content syndication platforms
  
• Industry forums
  
• Social media ads
  
• Influencer marketing
  
• PR link-building
  

For example, if you created a resource and your link-building outreach is unsuccessful, don't give up. Optimize your efforts until you get the results you're after.

Track and Optimize

Monitor the KPIs you've set during the first stage of this plan. So:


• Use reliable analytics tools to get precise insights into your campaign performance.
  
• Review your KPIs monthly.
  
• Unravel performance trends.
  
• Adapt your strategy to these insights until you reach your inbound marketing goals.
  

Wrapping Up

This guide explained all the particularities of B2B inbound marketing.

You now know the tactics that work, useful SEO tools, and good examples. You also have an actionable inbound marketing plan to guide you.

Remember, the mindset behind this plan is "give more to gain more."

Follow that approach, use the right tools, and you will reach your marketing goals even if you make some mistakes along the way.